Eastman Bridge Club promotes game through after school program

VIVIAN McINTIRE, Community Contributor
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Mar 14, 2017 at 3:15 PM

KINGSPORT — For the fifth year, the Eastman Bridge Club has promoted the game by teaching it in the Kingsport school system.

Bridge is a wonderful game for youth and adults alike. It helps improve memory, logic, and reasoning abilities, promotes math skills, good sportsmanship, and offers the opportunity for pleasant social interaction.

John Sevier Middle School and Ross N. Robinson Middle School participated in this year’s after school bridge program.

Classes started in September and ran through February. On Feb. 25, the fifth annual school bridge tournament was held when the two schools met in an end-of-class competition.

The event was held in the area outside Italian Village at the Kingsport Town Center. Nine enthusiastic middle school students competed for individual and school trophies.

The players for the Sevier team were awarded the second place plaque for their school. The Sevier team members were Logan Giles, Jesse Simpkins, Harrison Himelwright and Karly Stinson. Michelle Loudermilk was the teacher-sponsor of the team.

The first place trophy went to the Ross N. Robinson bridge club. The team was composed of Jacob Mai, Jacob Nash, Robert Morriss, Karen Sturgill and Jackson Woodward. Penny Cameron was the teacher-sponsor of the team.

The award for the highest scoring group in the tournament went to Robinson students Morriss, Sturgill and Woodward

The instructors for the after school bridge program were players from the Eastman Duplicate Bridge Club: Sarah and Jerry Wright and Mike and Vivian McIntire. The pizza, T-shirts, caps and tournament trophies awarded the participants were underwritten by Unit 165 of the American Contract Bridge League.